April 22 is officially known as Earth Day. The mission of Earth Day is an admirable one: environmental protection and sustainability. The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970, which can now be viewed as the birth of the modern-day environmental movement. Though it has become a regular phrase in our society, “going green” has been a slow process.

With thoughts of green on my mind on this day, I present to you four random thoughts about Earth Day 2011. Perhaps one of them will get you thinking about “going green”.

1. We have one pretty darn big solar system, and imagine this – as it stands right now, Earth is (currently) the only planet we can inhabit. Ponder that for a moment, if you will. If you ever needed anything to test your humility, that should do the trick. It also serves as a reminder of how important it is to maintain what we have in the here and now. If we don’t, we’re not running off to Saturn or Uranus any time soon.

2. Did you know that Austin, Texas is one of the 10 greenest cities in the US? I wouldn’t have doubted it – the phrase “reuse, recycle, repurpose” can be found throughout our fair city. The city leadership’s goal is to be the most energy-efficient city in the nation by 2015. Nothing like having a number one ranking around town – in something other than college football or basketball.

3. On April 22 last year, the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling rig sank to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico. The catastrophe created one of the worst natural disasters in US history. Strangely enough, it sank on – Earth Day. Now if that’s not ironic, I don’t know what is. Whether it was Earth Day or not, it was another reminder of how quickly life on the planet can change – for the worse.

4. All over this amazing planet, we’re faced with some rather strange climate changes. Sure, there are many that say that global warming is a figment of Al Gore’s imagination. But have you seen the weather trends over the past 10 years? In Austin this past month, we’ve seen temperatures in the low 40s and the high 80s in the same day! This past week – the third week of April – has seen the temperature climb up over 95 degrees. Those are August numbers we’re talking about there. I guess that doesn’t bode well for August. Go figure. I am not a climatologist – I just play one on TV – but even I know something strange is up.

I guess that is yet another reason to take care of the planet. We only go around this way once.

How about just one act of green today? If we all do it, we just might be able to put that trip to Saturn off for a few more decades.

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Allan Besselink

Allan Besselink, PT, Dip.MDT has a unique voice in the world of sport and health care, one that has been defined by his experiences as physiotherapist, mentor, McKenzie practitioner, coach, innovator, author, educator, patient, and athlete. Read more about Allan, contact him, get updates via email, or connect with him on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn.

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Up to 60% of runners will sustain an injury within any given year. Poor running mechanics, in conjunction with poor, ineffective and outdated training methods, can pose a significant injury risk. "RunSmart" was written to address these issues in the running community.